SMART NANOTEXTILES FOR BABY CLOTHING

Abstract

The development of smart nanotextiles has the potential to revolutionize the functionality of our clothing
and the fabrics in our surroundings. Nanoscale manipulation results in new functionalities for intelligent
textiles, including self-cleaning, sensing, actuating, and communicating. This is made possible by such
developments as new materials, fibers, and finishings; inherently conducting polymers; carbon nanotubes;
and antimicrobial nanocoatings. These additional functionalities have numerous applications,
encompassing healthcare, sports, military applications, and fashion. The wearer and the surrounding
environment may be monitored in an innocuous manner, giving continuous updates of individual health
status or environmental hazards. More generally, smart textiles become a critical part of the emerging
area of body sensor networks incorporating sensing, actuation, control, and wireless data transmission.
The last decade has witnessed a rapid increase of interest in new sensing and monitoring devices
including wearable wireless devices and sensor networks for several personal applications such as
healthcare, well being & lifestyle, protection and safety. Smart Wearable Systems (SWS) are sensor-
based integrated systems on body-worn platforms offering pervasive personalized solutions for
continuous, non-invasive monitoring of body and external parameters, including feedback to the user.
Several wearable solutions based on perimetric fixing using the body segments and the circular body part
(e.g. head, arm, wrist and leg) are available today either in R&D prototype (the majority) or commercial
products. Furthermore, new developments emerging from the miniaturization of electronics and materials
processing have being leading to the integration of multiple smart functions into textiles without being a
burden. The paper presents and discusses the main issues involved in the development of the area i.e. user
requirements, technologies, research and development of integrated systems as well as future challenges
to be met in order to reach a market with reliable and high value-added products.
 INTRODUCTION

The Textile industry occupies an important place in the Economy of the country because of its
contribution to the industrial output, employment generation and foreign exchange earnings. The textile
industry encompasses a range of industrial units, which use a wide variety of natural and synthetic fibres
to produce fabrics. The textile industry can be broadly classified into two categories, the organized mill
sector and the unorganized mill sector. Considering the significance and contribution of textile sector in
national economy, initiative and efforts are being made to take urgent and adequate steps to attract
investment and encourage wide spread development and growth in this sector.

Natural fibres can be defined as bio-based fibres or fibres from vegetable and animal origin. Based
on their origin, natural fibres can also be classified as cellulosic (from plants) and protein (from animals).
Excluded here are mineral fibres such as asbestos that occur naturally but are not bio -based. Other
natural fibres as defined for this policy are of plant origin, cellulosic and renewable. These other
natural fibres are produced in considerably smaller volumes compared to cotton, the largest natural
fibre (average 25 million tones per year), and are als o much lower than production of wool and jute
(2-3 million tones). Globally, the natural fibres industry provides employment to millions of
people, largely small scale marginal) farmers and proces sors. Natural fibres are more environment
friendly than synthetic fibres both in terms of production and their disposal. Natural fibres are
completely bio-degradable. Natural fibre can thus play a key role in the emerging “green” economy.

Technology is becoming increasingly prominent in our daily lives, in many ways alleviating and
in other ways fueling the demands of modern living. Huge opportunities exist in the textile market to
extend the functionality and performance of textiles to meet these demands. Intelligent textiles represent
the next generation of fibres, fabrics and articles produced from them. They can be described as textile
materials that think for themselves, for example through the incorporation of electronic devices or smart
materials. Many intelligent textiles already feature in advanced types of clothing, principally for
protection and safety and for added fashion or convenience.

The fashion industry is facing new challenges: “intelligent textiles”, “smart clothes”,“i-wear” and
“fashion engineering” are only a few of the keywords which will revolutionize new and old industry
within the next 5 to 10 years. The integration of high-technology into textiles, e.g. modern
communication or monitoring systems or the development of new materials with new functions, has just
started with timidity, but the branch already propagates an enormous boom for this sector. Especially
applications for the health sector, e.g. clothes with extern monitoring systems, are already today
anticipating a great demand . Developments in telecommunication, information technology and
computers are the main technical tools for Telemedicine (Telecare, Telehealth, e-health) now being
introduced in health care. Telemedicine - medicine at a distance - provides among the many possibilities
offered the tools for doctors to more easily consult each other. For individuals, e.g. with chronic diseases,
“Telemedicine” means, the possibility to stay in contact with their health care provider for medical advice
or even to be alerted if something begins to go wrong with their health. This opens up new possibilities
for personalized health and health care. In line with this, ongoing cutting edge research in fields such as
textiles, medical sensors and mobile communication could pave the way to a better life for a large number
of patients. The results of the researches will indeed make a positive impact on the quality of life for
individuals in the real world.

OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

i) To extract the fibre from Aloe vera Plant
ii) To make fabric and evaluate the properties.
iii) To construct baby clothing
iv) To incorporate smartness into the clothing
v) To evaluate the smart textiles.
 METHODOLOGY

1. ALOE VERA
Aloe vera, also known as the true or medicinal aloe, is a species of succulent plant in the genus
Aloe that is believed to have originated in the Sudan. Aloe vera is a stemless or very short-
stemmed succulent plant growing to 60–100 cm (24–39 in) tall,spreading by offsets. The leaves
are thick and fleshy, green to grey-green, with some varieties showing white flecks on the upper
and lower stem surfaces. The margin of the leaf is serrated and has small white teeth. The
flowers are produced in summer on a spike up to 90 cm (35 in) tall, each flower pendulous, with
a yellow tubular corolla 2–3 cm (0.8–1.2 in) long. Like other Aloe species, Aloe vera forms
arbuscular mycorrhiza, a symbiosis that allows the plant better access to mineral nutrients in
soil.
Aloe vera grows in arid climates and is widely distributed in Africa, India, and other arid
areas. The species is frequently cited as being used in herbal medicine. Many scientific studies
of the use of aloe vera have been undertaken, some of them conflicting. Despite these limitations,
there is some preliminary evidence that Aloe vera extracts may be useful in the treatment of
wound and burn healing, minor skin infections, Sebaceous cyst, diabetes, and elevated blood
lipids in humans.
Aloe Vera contains 160 important biologic compounds, to protect and regenerates the
skin and it gives a very soft sensation. Aloe Vera, a plant having good medicinal values, which
also has been extensively used in cosmetics and medicines, is now being experimented by the
weavers in Tamil Nadu to manufacture textile and apparel products.
Hence with this fact, the investigator selected Aloe Vera fibre for the study

2. SMART AND INTELLIGENT TEXTILE:

There is a substantive difference between the terms, Smart and Intelligent, Smart materials or textiles can
be defined as the materials and structures which have sense or can sense the environmental conditions or
stimuli, whereas intelligent textiles can be defined as textile structures which not only can sense but can
also react and respond to environmental conditions or stimuli. These stimuli as well as response, could be
thermal, chemical, mechanical, electric, magnetic or from other source.
2.1. Definition and Classification of Smart Textiles

Smart textiles are defined as textiles that interact with their surroundings. Smart textiles are also
defined as textiles that can sense and react to environmental conditions or stimuli from mechanical,
thermal, chemical, electrical or magnetic sources.

2.1.1. Components in smart textiles

Three components may be present in smart textiles (materials)

• Sensors
• Actuators
• Controlling units

The sensors provide a nerve system to detect signals. Some of the materials act only as sensors and some
as both sensors and actuators. Actuators act upon the signals and work in coordination with the
controlling unit to produce an appropriate output.
2.1.2. Types of smart textiles

According to functional activity smart textiles can be classified in three categories.

a. Passive Smart Textiles: The first generations of smart textiles, which can only sense the
environmental conditions or stimulus, are called Passive Smart Textiles.

b. Active Smart Textiles: The second generation has both actuators and sensors. The actuators act
upon the detected signal either directly or from a central control unit. Active Smart textiles are
shape memory, chameleonic, water-resistant and vapour permeable (hydrophilic/non porous),
heat storage, thermo regulated, vapour absorbing, heat evolving fabric and electrically heated
suits.

c. Ultra Smart Textiles: Very smart textiles are the third generation of smart textiles, which can
sense, react and adopt themselves to environmental conditions or stimuli. A very smart or
intelligent textile essentially consists of a unit, which works like the brain, with cognition,
reasoning and activating capacities. The production of very smart textiles is now a reality after a
successful marriage of traditional textiles and clothing technology with other branches of science
like material science, structural mechanics, sensor and actuator technology, advance processing
technology, communication, artificial intelligence, biology etc.

New fibre and textile materials, and miniaturized electronic components make the preparation of smart
textiles possible, in order to create truly usable smart clothes. These intelligent clothes are worn like
ordinary clothing, providing help in various situations according to the designed applications.

2.1.3. General methods of incorporating smartness into textiles

Textile to behave smartly it must have a sensor, an actuator (for active smart textiles) and a controlling
unit (for very smart textiles). These components may be fiber optics, phase change materials, shape
memory materials, thermo chromic dyes, miniaturized electronic items etc. These components form an
integrated part of the textile structure and can be incorporated into the substrate at any of the following
levels:

• Fiber spinning level

• Yarn/fabric formation level
• Finishing level
The active (smart) material can be incorporated into the spinning dope or polymer chips prior to spinning
e.g. lyocell fiber can be modified by admixtures of electrically conductive components during production
to make an electrically conductive cellulosic fiber. Sensors and activators can also be embedded into the
textile structure during fabric formation e.g. during weaving. Many active finishes have been developed
which are imparted to the fabric during finishing. The electronic control units can be synchronized with
each other during finishing. Techniques such as micro encapsulation are generally preferred for
incorporation of “smartness imparting material” in the textile substrate. However the correct material and
the correct method must be selected based on a variety of considerations.

Micro-encapsulation is a process in which tiny particles or droplets are surrounded by a

coating to give small capsules many useful properties. In a relatively simplistic form, a
microcapsule is a small sphere with a uniform wall around it. The material inside the
microcapsule is referred to as the core, internal phase, or fill, whereas the wall is sometimes
called a shell, coating, or membrane. Most microcapsules have diameters between a few
micrometers and a few millimeters.

The definition has been expanded, and includes most foods. Every class of food ingredient has
been encapsulated; flavors are the most common. The technique of microencapsulation depends
on the physical and chemical properties of the material to be encapsulated.

Without citations, this article may be argumentative. It is cautioned that the information below
may not be correct, as the current definitions and processes in this article can allow most
powders mixed with other liquids to be considered microencapsulated, if the liquid serves to
protect it in any way. The data below needs citations to be considered factual. These citations do
not currently exist.

Many microcapsules however bear little resemblance to these simple spheres. The core may be a
crystal, a jagged adsorbent particle, an emulsion, a suspension of solids, or a suspension of
smaller microcapsules. The microcapsule even may have multiple walls.
2.2 Smart materials
A smart polymer or material can be described as a material that will change its characteristics according
to outside conditions or stimuli. The following table shows the fundamental characteristics of any
difference in traditional, high performance and smart materials.

Category Fundamental material Fundamental system behaviors

characteristics
Natural materials (stone, wood) Materials have given Materials have no or limited
fabricated materials (steel, properties and are acted upon intrinsic active response capability
aluminum, concrete but can have good performance
properties
High performance materials: Material properties are Very good performance properties
polymers, composites designed for specific purposes
Smart materials: Property- Properties are designed to Smart materials have active
changing and energy exchanging respond intelligently to responses to external stimuli and
materials varying external conditions or can serve as sensors and actuators
stimuli

The input can be temperature, pH, or magnetic or electric field. The output can be change in length,
viscosity, color or conductivity.

Input (stimulus) → Active material → Output (response)

E-textiles, also known as electronic textiles, are fabrics that enable computing, digital
components, and electronics to be embedded in them. Part of the development of wearable
technology, they are known as intelligent clothing or smart clothing because they allow for the
incorporation of built-in technological elements in everyday textiles and clothes. Electronic
textiles do not strictly encompass wearable computing because emphasis is placed on the
seamless integration between the fabric and the electronic elements, such as cables,
microcontrollers, sensors and actuators.

RECENT UPDATE:

Mamagoose Baby Pyjamas

Smart clothes technologies could help to prevent Sudden Infant Death Syndrome
(SIDS) commonly known ‘cot death’. The Belgian company Verhaerth Design and
Development and the University of Brussels (VUB) have developed a new type of
pyjamas which is shown on Figure 7 that monitor babies during the sleep. The new
pyjamas are very aptly called “Mamagoose” and they draw on technology used in
two specific applications: The analogue biomechanics recorder experiment and the
respiratory inductive plethysmograhph suit. The Mamagoose pyjamas have five
special sensors positioned over the chest and stomach, three to monitor the infant’s
heart beat and two to monitor respiration. This double sensor system guarantees a
high level of
measuring precision. The special sensors are actually built into the cloth and have
no direct contact with the body, thus creating no discomfort for the baby. The
pyjamas are made of two parts: the first, which comes into direct contact with the
baby, can be machine-washed and the second, which contains the sensor system,
can be washed by hand. The pyjamas come in three sizes, are made of non-allergic
material and have been especially designed to keep the sensors in place during in
use. The control unit with alarm system is connected to the pyjamas and
continuously monitors and processes the signals received from five sensors. It is
programmed with an alarm algorithm which scans the respiration pattern to detect
unexpected and possibly dangerous situations. Mamagoose prototypes have been
tested on many babies in different hospitals, environments and conditions. These
include babies of various weights and sizes when they are different ‘moods’ such as
calm, nervous or upset, and when they are sleeping in different positions. To date,
the results have been extremely promising .

CONCLUSION

�Smart textiles are making their way to the market.

� Standardization helps in gaining market acceptance for a new product and increases
confidence in product quality (Euratex survey).
� There will soon be a need for standards (definitions, test methods, product specifications) for
smart textile products.
� Knowledge is among manufacturers, researchers, users etc.: a joint effort is necessary.
� Help us to inventorize the situation and the needs.
REFERENCSE:

http://el.mdu.edu.tw/datacos/09610221038A/Smart%20Nanotextiles-%20A%20Review%20of
%20Materials%20and%20Applications.pdf

http://www.springerlink.com/content/rt0634g103m0615t/

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/10/081018191929.htm

http://www.ualberta.ca/~jag3/smart_textiles/Page_3.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E-textiles

http://tectexntu.wordpress.com/2010/02/11/introduction/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Textile

http://smartgarments.blogspot.com/2007/12/intelligent-textiles-in-medical.html

http://www.fibre2fashion.com/industry-article/12/1172/wearable-electronic-clothes1.asp

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/US_standard_clothing_size